What Are Gout Symptoms?

KYW Medical Reports Sponsored By Independence Blue Cross

By Dr. Brian McDonough, Medical Editor

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Gout is one of those medical conditions that you do not even think about unless you suffer from it.

However, gout was known in medieval times as a disease of the rich.  Gout is associated with high fat and definitely purine-rich foods and uric acid is the culprit that is associated with gout.  When levels of uric acid are high in someone's blood, crystals of the chemical form in joints causing pain and disability.  But it may not just stop there.  Studies have found that among elderly adults, those who were in the highest 25 percent uric acid levels in the normal range also performed in the lowest 25 percent of the population on a variety of various ways to measure memory, processing speed, and psycho-motor speed.

There could be a substantial relationship between uric acid and the way the brain works.  We may end up finding that monitoring uric acid could be a valuable tool in dealing with memory issues. Others suggest it is the high calorie diet that may be related to the issues. The bottom line here is that a good diet is associated with good health.